Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor If Hollywood got its hands on the story of the endangered western pond turtle, we’d recognize all the tropes of a classic under dog turtle story, filled with struggle, redemption and hope. Woodland Park Zoo presents: The Underturtle . Because sometimes the underdog is a turtle. Photo by John Loughlin/Woodland Park Zoo. Knocked out by predators, loss of habitat and invasive species, the western pond turtle population hit a devastating low of 150 turtles in Washington in 1990. But now, this native species is poised for a comeback. For more than two decades, Woodland Park Zoo has partnered with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon Zoo and others to give these turtles a fighting chance. As part of our Living Northwest conservation program , we collect their eggs from the wild, hatch and raise them in the safety of the zoo until they are large enough to avoid invasive predators, and release the turtles into local waterways to rebui

Posted by: Kerston Swartz, Public Affairs and Advocacy This week, Seattle said YES to renew its commitment to 450 parks, 26 community centers, 185 athletic fields, 120+ playgrounds and one extremely thankful zoo. With the passing of Proposition 1, Woodland Park Zoo will be able to complete major maintenance projects critical to our functionality and guest experience. A stable and dedicated funding source established by creating a voter-approved park district means we can make badly-needed upgrades to our electrical, water and other utility systems, replace aging and inefficient structures and (maybe most importantly) make strides toward our sustainability goals. Here’s what your YES vote makes possible: Preventing energy loss The roof of the Tropical Rain Forest (TRF) building used to look like this: Look at all of that light coming through! Archive photo by Woodland Park Zoo.  Today, it looks like this: Not so much light coming through anymore. Photo by Ryan

Posted by: Kirsten Pisto, Communications Have you noticed a particularly handsome new face at the snow leopard exhibit? That would be Dhirin, the most recent addition to our snow leopard family! VIDEO: Dhirin the snow leopard explores his new exhibit. We set up a GoPro camera at the back of Dhirin’s exhibit to see if we could catch a glimpse of him as he explored his space, then stitched together a few of our favorite moments for this video. In the wild, snow leopards are hard to track or study, but motion-sensor cameras and radio collars provide researchers with a better look into their behavior. Thanks to research and care in zoo settings, we can apply these two tracks of knowledge to better understand these disappearing predators. The 9-year-old male was born on May 24, 2005 and lived at Oklahoma City Zoo. Dhirin arrived in Seattle in early July 2014 as recommended by the Species Survival Plan, a conservation breeding program across accredited zoos. Woodland Park Zoo

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor Would you describe yourself as sweet or commanding? Do you prefer Jell-O to peanuts? Take the “Which Orangutan Am I?” quiz to see which one of Woodland Park Zoo’s five orangutans you are most like—Towan, Heran, Melati, Chinta or Belawan. Then post your results here and share with your friends! (Me? I’m such a Chinta.) Come meet your orangutan at Asian Wildlife Conservation Day on Sat., August 9, 2014  to learn all about these amazing apes and what you can do to protect them in the wild. At the special event, free with zoo admission or membership, you’ll enjoy keeper talks and activities for the family at the orangutan exhibit, where you can take a pledge to protect this endangered species. You’ll even have the chance to enter a raffle to win a painting made by one of our very own orangutans! Towan creates a work of art. Photo by Carolyn Sellar/Woodland Park Zoo. The activities continue across the zoo spotlighting conservation for

Posted by: Caileigh Robertson, Communications Sure, the plaque is nice. But the real prize in receiving the Future Zookeeper Award for 9-year-old Karina is the official Woodland Park Zoo name badge that reads simply, "Karina, Future Zookeeper." Her eyes lit up when she received this badge of honor at yesterday's annual zookeeper picnic, part of the zoo's National Zookeeper Week celebrations. Although shy at first, Karina beamed with excitement upon receiving her personalized zoo name badge from zookeeper Russ Roach. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo Many of the most memorable visitor experiences at Woodland Park Zoo come from connecting with the animals we've grown to know and love. It’s where Karina’s adoration for elephants took hold nearly seven years ago and, to her surprise, where an unlikely friendship continues to grow with every return to the zoo's Elephant Forest. Karina as a youngster watching after her favorite animals at Woodland

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor End the ivory trade before it ends elephants. To stop the slaughter of elephants, we must stop the trade. To stop the trade, we must end the demand. Watch this video to see what's at stake: Click to play video. It's time to raise your voice and let Washington state leaders know you pledge never to buy, sell or trade ivory, and you want a moratorium on ivory sales here. Add your name to the list of thousands speaking up for wild elephants. Then on August 12—World Elephant Day—we'll deliver your pledges to our state leaders to make a big impression. Thank you! Video produced by Rebecca Whitham, elephant photo courtesy of Mustafa Hassanali/Tarangire Elephant Project, music by Tchakare Kanyembe.

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor This is the 40th penguin chick hatched at Woodland Park Zoo since 2010, seen here at 45 days old. Photo by John Loughlin/Woodland Park Zoo. Our Humboldt penguins are a prolific bunch. Since 2010—the first breeding season in their new exhibit—our colony has produced 41 chicks! Earlier in the season, we were counting up eggs (yes, before they hatched) and got excited when we realized we were going to reach an historic 40th hatching. And though we love our round numbers, we won’t complain that one more egg was laid and number 41 came along at the end of May. Photo by John Loughlin/Woodland Park Zoo. This season alone, we had nine chicks hatch, with six already fledged and out on exhibit, and the three youngest—numbers 39, 40 and 41—still on the nest with their parents. These hatchings are all part of the Species Survival Plan (SSP) conservation breeding program across Association of Zoos & Aquariums-accredited zoos. Zoos work together

Posted by: Dr. Deborah B. Jensen, President and CEO Dr. Deborah B. Jensen. Photo by Matt Hagen. Right now, you can help save wild elephants. In the few minutes it takes to read my message, your simple but remarkable action will alter the course of history for imperiled elephants and our world. Please join me and sign the pledge never to buy, sell or trade ivory and to support a moratorium on ivory products in Washington state. Together, we will help stop the killing, stop the demand, and stop the trade. With one unified voice, our community can make a difference. We already have a great running start. Just three hours after launching our 96 Elephants signature gathering effort, we soared right past our first 960 pledges. This community’s amazing groundswell of support and action is truly inspiring. Now, let’s multiply 960 over and over between now and August 12, World Elephant Day, when we’ll deliver all of the pledges to our elected officials to tell them Washingtonians ar